Pip's Bucket World Tour

Sunday was All Soul's Day for us and the time for our yearly visit to Grandpa. Grandpa rests in Lenggong... a good 45 mins away. I think we could probably reach in 30 mins if i drove fast on this new straight highway. But who's rushing... i was enjoying the scenery before me :)

Started our day quite early at 6.45am. Dad, Boy and I made a pit stop at the market to buy 5 bunches of flowers. We did have a lot of people to visit. The market aunties and uncles were surprised to see my face at that hour because i will usually only show my lazy self at 8.30 or 9 am... still in my pajama face. Then we scoot off to a coffee shop to meet my uncles and aunts. The numbers were few this year. There was papa and his 4 brothers, 2 aunties, Gary, Boy and I. I was the third youngest there.. hahhahahahaa.. can you imagine. I am with some grey and i am still the third youngest in our troop to Lenggong.

I even overshot my destination while i was going my merry way. Happily i went on the new road... and missed the turnoff and was on my way to Grik until Boy said... its there laaa.. turn back turn back.. *LOL* He sometimes wonder what a total idiot he has for an auntie.

Our yearly trips used to be a whole lot of people. Even when grandma was around... we got to go in at least 5 or 6 cars to accomodate everyone. It was like a huge party... and the whole clan would be running all over town and paint the Lenggong town red. It was fun then. The roads used to be very winding... at one point almost reaching Lenggong.. it was a left and a right and a left and another right... it was a wooooooozy drive. My sisters and i used to puke when we were small. We'll eat a big bun and milo and on the way... the winding road.. and my papa's famous rocket driving... we would be hanging plastic bags on our ears. Some years we were lucky and got smarter and not eat in the morning. But my 2nd sister almost always puke on all our road trips.. hahhahahahahhahaa.. (she'll kill me for this)

Now this year... is a lonely year. I remember last year... we had quite a big crowd. And we took lots of pictures. This year, after praying and doing the necessary, all the old folks just wanted to go home. We didn't stopped at Sauk for a good hearty meal like last year. We just went on straight back home to Ipoh.

The we stopped at Perak Tong Temple to visit Grandma. After some prayers... we went to another temple to visit Stephanie. And lastly, we went to St Michael's Church to visit mom. Quite a few stopovers in a day. And all are in different parts of Ipoh. But hey... how big is Ipoh rite? We were glad we manage to visit all our loved ones. Then lunch... and off home.

Dommy and Piper were so glad to see us. They were wondering where we went for so long. Dommy even jumped 2 feet high again.. hahhahahaa... Such joyful welcome home. I just had a quick shower and fell on the bed dead as a log.

Hopefully next year, our list of heroes will be longer. Papa and his brothers are really getting old. After so many years, they still make the yearly visit to their father. We need more younger heroes to take over the job of driving, clearing the place and stuffs :) And its actually quite a fun place to catch up with my cousins and rest of the family. Its either Lenggong or Chinese New Year. During the rest of the year, everyone is too caught up in their own lives.

I promised some photos from this trip. Just loaded it up and zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzZZZZZZZZZZZ... am really tired after all the fever i caught from Bain. His fever is almost contagious... cos you keep on trying and trying the HDR and you just don't want to sleep.. hahhahahahahaaa... soon I will have panda eyes again.

I'll post the pictures from this trip another day on BooMooHoo :) now its off to lala land because i have to wake Boy up tomorrow to go to school. Papa is off on holiday with his friends again. And this time to Penang. He is very happy to go on holidays. He said... go anywhere also never mind... as long as i have some place to go and see things. Which reminds me... i got to get him a small light camera. Dang! I miss the DCIM fair.

We are going on a roadtrip tomorrow... without Dommy and Piper. They are both going to stay at home and take care of the fort.

Every year... at almost this time of the year, we go back home to Grandpa's hometown and visit him too. Its All Soul's Day for the Malaysian chinese folks.

Grandpa's hometown is in Lenggong, Perak. Its a wonderful small little town with two rows of shophouses... and a big bus station (where grandpa used to be station master). Its always a nostalgic trip for my papa and his brothers. They always drag us to their old house which is not ours anymore... and drag us all over town. All the town people still remember them.. and its wonderful to see papa and his brothers grinning here and there like small kids.

The old cendol man even remembers grandpa... (i think he's gone now). Grandma uprooted the family after grandpa passed away and they moved to Ipoh. We were all born in Ipoh... and our roots all continue from here.

But i love Lenggong. Its laid back... people are nice... and the fish is nice (more on the fish next time) and the water is like ice. Try taking a bath here. You'll be shivering in your skin. The waterfalls are just too wonderful and like ice too.

Every year since we were little, we make this trip back to Lenggong for All Soul's Day. I am looking forward to tomorrow's trip even though my siblings will not be with me. At least it will still be photography trip for me. More on Lenggong tomorrow.

I better get a rest or i'll be too woozy to drive and hold the camera tomorrow. Then it will be more blurry pictures... which photoshop sometimes cannot fix.. hehehehhee

My papa might just wake up suddenly now and nag me for keeping a late night cos tomorrow i need to drive... eeeeeeeeiiiiii... scared.

I am too old to be afraid of being nagged... hahhahaa..

Goodnite folks. I'll end this post with the road leading to Grandpa. :) More pictures tomorrow.

Opps! papa just woke up.. i better go hide for a while under my table... *shush*

Happy 13th Birthday to you Aki.May you have rainbows all through your life.May you always have hands to pull you up when you are down.May you always find the world extra curious, fun and enchanting.May all your wishes come true.

Earth Hour is not just about an hour of switching off the lights and be in darkness for an hour. It is not a huge party where people gather to have fun in candle light environments. Earth Hour is to teach us to conserve energy and waste less. It also has a symbolic meaning that by working together, we can all make a difference in this world. Don't just have Earth Hour and forget about it after the hour have passed. Conserve energy ye!

My friend started a new job last week in a foreign land. The office is in a new faraway place with not many food outlets around. The nearest being quite far away. The only available shop at the office block is just Delifrance downstairs.

After Day 6... i think Stormy has finally flipped. How many croissants or baguettes can you eat in a week? Many actually.. hahaha

In Malaysia, we have a very wide variety of food everywhere. Malaysia is a foodie heaven. For a Malaysian to be in a foreign land eating bread every single meal... it is quite hard to stomach. But, having food is a blessing and we should be thankful for having food to eat.

I remember a friend who moved to a foreign land. She missed chili and curry so much, she told me she craved for anything chili. She would even rub chili on her tongue if she can find some kinda chili. *LOL*

With globalisation, we can find Malaysian food in most major cities in the world. But somehow, something somewhere is lacking. Either it cost a bomb or somehow the taste is different.

I grew up with Stephanie, her sisters and mine. We were grandma's Seven Fairies. Everywhere we go, our uncles and aunts will call us the Seven Fairies. The other younger ones that came later... they never made it to Grandma's list of Seven Fairies.

Our houses were just a stone throw away. We share many laughter and happy times. When we grew older and i moved to Kuala Lumpur... we didn't spend much time anymore. I always regard her as "Tai Ka Che" meaning Big Sister. She was our Big Sister to all of us.

Sometimes i think in our haste to find ourselves, we forget about the ones at home. While finding our own goals and life, we all drifted apart.

When i came back after mom passed away, she tried to be Big Sister to me again. Me and my time management, i never did find the time to spend time with her. In my mind's eye... we still got a lifetime. She'll call me sometimes and said she is dropping food over. And sometimes she'll send me things that she has baked.

In our own hurried world, we never made time to chat. We took it for granted that we'll always have time when we are old and gray.

Her cancer came quick and vicious. Since the day she found out she had cancer, she only had 3 more months to live. And less than 3 months, she is gone.

I remember when i was away during the holidays to welcome Bebe J, i worried every night that i might not make it to see her again. When i landed, first thing sis did was take me to the hospital. She was lying there.. and she held my hand really tight. She wanted to see pictures of Bebe J. She was so happy she smiled and said she is auntie again.

Her last few days of battle, even in her very confused state of mind, she wrote notes to her children and her family. Her eyes open once in a while and when she could, she wrote many many notes. Her will to live was remarkable. She didn't want to die but it was her time to go. In her state of confusion on the last days, she still wrote that she saw me.

On her last day before she left us, i held her hands again. It was cold. I was praying hard and ask God to just take her home :(

She has lived a good life. She has seen many places and travelled far and wide. She is great mother and a wonderful wife.

Sometimes i wonder why some people would want to put an end to their lives when life throw them a curveball. When life is tough, keep on going and keep on moving. When things go wrong, try harder and find the light at the end. Live life to the fullest because we only get one life... so let's make it a fulfilled one.

My little pink nephew is growing very fast since i last saw him and since i last held him in my arms. I wonder if he still remember me. Tomorrow he will be 12 weeks. Till i see you again soon lil pink man.

I am bad with dates... and since i got Godmother status *wink wink*.. i should probably keep track of all his important dates :) I miss you little one.

Frustrating. I spent the whole afternoon trying to ftp some files... and i have been having server timeout... timeout and timeout. Argggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh...

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breathe inbreathe out..it seems to be working... hahahhahahaha

Before you get angry... always count to 10. After 10... we are usually less angry than we were when we were counting at 1. Before you lashed out... hold your tongue and count to 10.

When we get angry, we usually say things that hurt other people. Or we could hurt ourselves by kicking stones too hard... hahahhahaa.. And never never drive when you are angry. You can die... but if your don't die and you cause another person to die, how are you going to get through life with that guilt.

Once my dad was really angry about something... and he drove very fast. And he kept scolding at everything on the road... he went faster and faster. I just close my eyes. I was thinking, this is going to be the end. I am going to die. hahhhahahahaa.. Somehow he calmed down himself. Maybe he thought that i was scared cos i closed my eyes. But i close my eyes because i don't want to see what's coming.

I try not to let him drive when we go out now. His eyes are not too good too to drive at night. He still scold everything and everyone on the road.. (forgive him cos he is an old man... he cannot stand people going at snail pace).. hhahahaa.. and i will drive slowly and wheeze in and out. Most of the time he cannot stand my driving... hahaha.. and i tell him... where are we rushing to Papa?

Its going to be almost two years since mom's gone and since i came home. In this two years i have learnt a lot of patience and tolerance. Some of the times, i am counting 1 to 10 in my head. Sometimes i have to hold my tongue. And... i only learnt patience and tolerance from the best example ever. No one can teach you patience and tolerance better than... a dog.

Do you remember this movie? I was mebbe about.. err.. urmmmm.. how old was i then.. when the movie played.. hehe.. and i was allowed to watch a movie with a title like "French Kiss" *LOL* I was with the thought that there was some French Kissing in the movie.. hahhahahahaa.. errr.. urrm... but nooooooooo... it was just Meg Ryan and Kevin Kline.

Anyways.. the movie is feely lovey movie.. movies that most girls like i suppose. That most men/boys would dread taking their other half to. *LOL*

I am a big fan of Meg Ryan and most of her movies. I like her aloofness in these kinda movie.

One of my favourite guy... Robbie Williams ;) His talent... his voice.. I love him :) I used to listen to him so much at one stage of my life... he was like my dream guy. Yes yes.. i dream of him too.. hhahahahahaa.. Love his bad boy image. I don't know what's with us women and our love for bad boys.. haha

His performance here in the Royal Albert Hall is amazing. I would have cried if i was there... or probably jump up and down and scream myself crazy. *lol* That's how much i love his music.

Some people however don't like his attitude and his bad bad boy image. But.. great talent and great voice... everything else comes second.

The weekend passes by like... a whoooooooooosh! Did you all have a great weekend? Hope everyone did and manage to spend quality time with their loved ones.

Mine was quiet... i was just sleeping a lot... waking up to play... sleep again... and play some more (urrmmm.. its not what some of you all think).. hahahaha. Do you call that a great weekend or what? :D

Didn't sneak in any work (at all) this weekend. Tomorrow i will probably have quite an earful the minute my yahoo is ON for work :p I think.. if i am lucky... i will probably get away with just an earful. I have been working many weekends since last year... sometimes i even lost track of what day it is. I just conveniently thinks that it is a working day.. hahaha So i guess i give myself a break this time :)

So this weekend.. was my weekend of bumming off. Snoozing a lot... playing with PP and Dom... reading lotta... scribbling... experimenting.

I think i am spending too much time online.. in front of the computer when i should be out in the garden running with the dogs. Poor doggies sometimes look at me with very sad eyes and say.. let's go out and run a round. hehehe.. Sometimes i give in to their sad eyes... and i just said.. let's gooooooooooooooooooo.. and off we go running to the door... Dommy jumping 2 feet high... and off we run into our garden.

They don't ask for much... just a run once in a while.. food.. and all the love you can share. I love them both very much. They give my life more meaning and they teach me to have fun and take a break. They make my life less stressful with the big smiles on their faces. I count myself lucky... to have two heartbeats at my feet ;)

Time to snooze... and prepare my ears for my early morning earful. Goodnite folks

Its 2.30 am here in Malaysia... and here i am in front of my window to the world. Was out the whole night with my nephew... took him for a movie. We've been wanting to go for movie night with papa for many weeks now. Its is already almost to the end of March and this is our first movie of the year. We didn't wait for papa this time.. hahahaaa.. (i wonder if he'll be mad if he knew we went without him.. urmm..) BUT... we didn't go for the funny movie that he wanted to see. We'll go take him when he comes back.

All work and no play is a no no in my dictionary for kids... err.. teenager.. young man. How these kids grow so fast... i can't even keep track. One minute i was changing their diapers... and next... they are telling me about girls. *lol* Now.. i am feeling grey.

I love to take kiddos out to movies. I remember the first movie we took Boy. We were all so afraid that he'll be restless... and be grumpy or wail out loud in the dark. But he was ok... he did talk loudly during the movies.. hahhahaa.. we were going shhh shhh... and keep giving him the popcorn.. hahahaha My father and him.. talked so loud.. like they are watching tv at home. I keep sliding lower and lower in my seat.. just in case we get barked by the other movie-goers.

Today... we were both contemplating what to watch... only 4 movies to choose in this mall. We ended up watching Street Fighter... hahhahaaa.. i was going.. do we have to watch Street Fighter?? its a game.. you know the game you used to play when you were a kid. But Boy insisted he wanted to watch it.. so ok.. Street Fighter it is. Not bad laa... it could have been worse... with me drooling and snoozing off if the movie is crappy. Kristin Kreuk packs quite a punch in this movie.

We only had some laksa before we went in. We had 10mins to eat before the movie. Now my tummy is growling. Even my two bodyguards at my feet are twitching each time my tummy rumbles.. hehhehehee.

They are sleeping so soundly now. I better hold my tummy tight... and sleep too. My doggies each fight to hold pole position at my workstation.. *LOL*.. so now i drag both their beds... on the left and right.. like speakers... they surround me like a surround sound system. Both are happy now.

Pikachu has been with Piper since he was little. Pikachu is a gift from the kids to him. This is his best buddy and he tells/complains to Pikachu about everything under the sun. Really.. he does. Pikachu accompanies him when his mummy and daddy goes to work. Pikachu is with him at night. They share a relationship kinda like Calvin and Hobbes. I sometimes wonder about the stories he shares with Pika.

After he has his oranges, he must go and hold on to his Pika. His mummy says he wants to share his oranges with Pika. Strange? haha.. Not really. Best friends share almost everything.

As you all can see.. Pika is all worn out now :)

PP is fiercely very defensive of his Pika. If you snatch it away from him... he will bark at you till kingdom come. He growls deeply... when you try and snatch it when he is having a conversation with his Pika. Strange..? Really.. no. Dogs.. they are sometimes almost like human too. They needs friends... and what they really do need most is other dogs. Other dogs complete them. Like how humans complete each other. They are not any different from us. All they need is just a friend.

The dog was created specially for children. He is a god of frolic - Henry Ward Beecher

Kuning is indeed a god of frolic.. hahaha.. She is so lovable and funny. With a face like this... who can not but to fall in love with her.

I think Kuning would have grown a few inches already since the last time i saw her during CNY. Soon she will be much much bigger than PP... and Dommy too. When she comes running.... without brakes... we all better be ready to fall backwards :)

Just heard my dad listen to this song last week. I think he just found it and remembered such a song. This song sorta give me a nice nice feeling. A dancing... ballroom kinda song again :)

My papa is on holiday today. He took the bus to Kuala Lumpur to visit his other grandkids and daughters. Hope he will have a good time with them.

We almost missed the bus today. Took a gamble and only drove to the bus station 15mins before the bus is supposed to take off. And my driving and me in my old car, when we reach the bus station... the bus is no where to be seen. *LOL* The lady at the counter just said... "Bas suda pergi" hahhahaha... meaning Bus has left.

Boy and i quickly packed my father back into the car and we sped off to the 2nd bus station which the bus is supposed to be to pick up the rest of the passengers. I guess my father never saw me drove so fast... actually not that fast. Cos my car is old... the most it could go is a wobbly fast. hhahahahhahaa.. He kept mumbling.. bus already gone la... hhahahahhaa

When we screeched to a stop... both of them jumped down and walla... bus is there. I went to park the car.. and next minute.. the bus is moving already. If we got stalled at another traffic light.. we would have to chase the bus on the highway... or buy another ticket. Poor dad. His heart must have skipped 2 beats with my driving. Actually... he drives much much faster than me. He in his rocket. He cannot stand my slow driving. I told him.. this is Ipoh.. people drive slow. Then he would go... see see.. u missed another traffic light. Now we got to wait again. *LOL* My father in his rocket.. they whizzed past the traffic lights before the turn orange.

Ipoh is famous for the many many traffic lights. There's not a lot of cars but the traffic lights are causing all the jams. Weird eh?

Well.. dad is in KL with his other loved ones. While Boy and me is here with Dom and PP. Its the school holidays. Hope he will have a great time with my sisters.

This is to test your ability to get out of the box and think outta it :D

This is an unusual paragraph. I'm curious how quickly you can find out what is so unusual about it. It looks so plain you would think nothing was wrong with it. In fact, nothing is wrong with it! It is unusual though. Study it, and think about it, but you still may not find anything odd. But if you work at it a bit, you might find out. Try to do so without any coaching! Guess what's unusual about the para above.For my die-hard Riddle buddies... Nessa & Spiff... here's to you :D

p/s: Spiff.. no googling for the answer! U can ask Hobbes.. but no googling.. ;)

Take time to chew your food: Chew your food slowly, savoring every bite. We tend to rush though our meals, forgetting to actually taste the flavors and feel the textures of what is in our mouths. Reconnect with the joy of eating. **Sweet Vegetables: Naturally sweet vegetables are an excellent way to add healthy sweetness to your meals and reduce your cravings for other sweets. Some examples of sweet vegetables are corn, carrots, beets, sweet potatoes or yams, winter squash, and onions. **I love all my carrots, sweet potatoes and peas. When i eat.. i chew slowly.. not like Dommy.. he rush thru his meals like a landmower.. wooof! Like he is rushing off to meet someone. Eat your food slowly.. enjoy the aroma.. the texture... the food... and most of all... the taste! Yummy.. today i had carrots.. yum yum.. mashed carrots with potato and duck :)

My nose is flowing like a river today. After the very lazy Sunday, it got worse today. Now i haveta find two plugs to plug up my nose cos each time i bend over... it flows again. hahhahahahahaa..

This afternoon i took two flu tabs... and like magic... i fell backwards and fell asleep. (good thing i work from home.. can't find no beds in the office). Wonder what kinda superdrug they put in the flu tabs. I didn't even have time to grab my favourite camel toy before i was snoozing the wholeeeeeeee afternoon. I was just out. After two hours, manage to crawl outta bed with tens of many messages on my desktop..

where are you!are you there!hey! hey!are your there... buzz! buzzz!

hahahhahahahaa... so many people looking for me while i was snoozing away... ;)

The beauty of working at home...1) My doggies beside me... they are great stress relievers.2) My bed beside me...3) I can even cook during lunch (but i am too lazy.. )4) Roll on the floor with my dog+gies (since PP is around this week)5) See my dogs every single minute6) Take them for a poo and a pee7) Give them treats when the day is long8) Brainstorm with them.. and ask them for suggestions.. sometimes they nod like they really do understand what i am doing9) Roll on the floor with my dog+gies.. hehhehehee (thats the highlight of my day)10) Hug them when the work is tough... this surely works

Lazy day today. Rainy too. Sleeping was the most obvious thing to do when it rains. When i look at Dommy and PP... both snuggling comfortably in the beds... i did the same too. I can sleep as much as the doggies.. but they usually only sleep for 40 winks.

They both sleep in the same room with me. When i make the slightnest move... or turn in bed.. they both sit up... like its morning or its time to go for walks. Both with eager eyes... ready to go. But sometimes its 3am in the morning. So.. when i sleep... i try not to move too much.. hhahahahahhahaa.. crazy rite?

After sleeping for almost the whole day, now i am with a stuck nose. How did that happen? hehhehehee.. too much sleep i guess. *lol* How does a flu drop by when you get too much rest.. guess i better work more and sleep less... so i don't get sick ;)

Oh.. i got to share this poem.. its beautiful and from the other book i got.

I was talking to my colleague this morning about marriage and love. Love being much simpler during the olden days. Now we set our own bar too high.. and expectations exceed simple common sense. Love is after all very simple. Its just a four-letter word :D

My parents.. they were teenage sweethearts. They were neighbours too. And that's how Div gave me this song. I do not know Hindi or Urdu... but she just told me that is a very famous hindi song.. and it means something like "At the neigbour's window, I see a beauty that outshines the moon". My mom was a real beauty.

I love this song.. especially the expressions on the faces of the guys in the video. Their eyes are so hilarious.. they keep darting up and down. Its a nice catchy song. Enjoy!

Its a beautiful morning and i just woke up. I went to the garden for a stroll and check out my mails. Some doggie left Dommy and i a mail by the gate. Hmmm... We both send back a mail each.. by the gate :D

How are you doing mummy? Didya miss me?

My paws are a bit dirty now. But Anny says its ok since both of us will be having a bath tomorrow.

Yesterday i have lotta carrots and potatoes and veal + Avengers for dinner. I almost finish all my food.. but it was a lot. I finish the last bit an hour later. I love the carrots.

Grandpa shared his orange with me again. I love grandpa most. Cos he takes me for walks and he shares his orange with me everyday.

How is daddy? Does he still go for his walks without me there? Tell him not to miss me too much. I'll be back soon.